ing the night of 26-27 Dec. 1860. He was bre- vetted major for the distinguished part he took in this transfer, and was one of the defenders of the fort during its subsequent bombardment. He was made brigadier-general of volunteers, 28 Oct., 1861, commanded a brigade in Burnside's North Caro- lina expedition, and received the brevet of lieu- tenant-colonel for his services at Roanoke isl- and. While in command of the Department of North Carolina, with the rank of major-general of volunteers, in 1862-'8, he conducted several impor- tant expeditions. He had charge of the combined departments of Virginia and North Carolina from July till November, 1863, and afterward of the army and department of tlae Ohio, which he relin- quished in December, 1868, on account of severe injuries from the fall of his horse. After the termi- nation of his sick leave he commanded the Depart- ment of the South, co-operating efficiently with Gen. Sherman, and preparing to assist in the re- duction of Charleston under Sherman's orders, when suffering caused by his old wound obliged him to transfer the command to Gen. Quincy A. Gillmore. In 1865 he was brevetted brigadier-general in the regular army for gallant services in the capture of Savannah, Ga., and major-general for services in the field during the rebellion. He was in command of the Department of Florida in 1865-'6, and on tem- porary duty in the engineer bureau of Washington in 1867. He afterward served as superintending engineer of various river and harbor improve- ments. His submarine engineering operations in Boston and Portsmouth harbors were conducted with great ability and were eminently successful. He contributed articles to periodical literature on engineering topics, and published " Submarine Blasting in Boston Harbor" (New York, 1869).
FOSTER, Jacob Post Giraad, lawyer, b. in
New York city, 8 April, 1827; d. there, 26 Feb.,
1886. He was graduated with the first honors at
Columbia in 1844, studied law in Harvard law-
school, and was admitted to the bar in 1848. He
practised in New York city, and gained a high
reputation, especially as an insurance lawyer.
FOSTER, John Watson, diplomatist, b. in
Pike county, Ind., 2 March, 1886. He was gradu-
ated at the Indiana state university in 1855, and,
after one year at Harvard law-school, was admitted
to the bar and began practice in Evansville. He
entered the National service in 1861 as major of
the 25th Indiana infantry. After the capture of
Fort Donelson he was promoted to lieutenant-
colonel, and subsequently was made colonel of the
65th Indiana mounted infantry. Later he was ap-
pointed colonel of the 136th Indiana regiment.
During his encire service he was connected with the
western armies of Grant and Sherman. He was
commander of the advance brigade of cavalry in
Burnside's expedition to East Tennessee, and was
the first to occupy Knoxville in 1868. After the
war he became editor of the Evansville " Daily
Journal," and in 1869 was appointed postmaster
of that city. He was sent as U. S. minister to
Mexico by President Grant in 1873, and reap-
pointed by President Hayes in 1880. In March of
that year he was transferred to Russia, and held
that mission until November, 1881, when he re-
signed to attend to private business. On his return
to this country. Col. Foster established himself
in practice in international cases in Washington,
D. C., acting as counsel for foreign legations before
courts of commissions, in arbitrations, etc. Presi-
dent Arthur appointed him minister to Spain, and he
served from February, 1883, till March. 1885, when
he resigned and returned to the United States, hav-
ing negotiated an important commercial treaty with
the Spanish government. This treaty elicited gen-
eral discussion and was strongly opposed in the
senate. That body failed to confirm it, and it was
afterward withdrawn by President Cleveland for
reconsideration. Some weeks later Gen. Foster
was instructed to return to Spain to reopen nego-
tiations for a modified treaty. This mission, how-
ever, was unsuccessful, and Mr. Poster remained
abroad but a few months.
FOSTER, John Wells, geologist, b. in Brim-
field, Mass., 4 March, 1815 ; d. in Chicago, 111., 29
June, 1873. He left the Wesleyan university in
1884, having completed the scientific course, and,
removing to Zanesville, Ohio, was admitted to the
bar in 1885. His scientific studies were continued
in moments of leisure from his legal practice. In
1887 he became an assistant in the geological sur-
vey of Ohio, and made a very thorough report on
the great central coal-bed of Ohio, with a detailed
section of the carboniferous limestone near Colum-
bus as far as the uppermost bed of coal near
Wheeling. He was occupied with this work imtil
1844, when he returned to Massachusetts and fol-
lowed civil engineering, meanwhile giving attention
to the study of metallurgy and geology. In 1845
he was sent to the Lake Superior region, in the in-
terests of several mining companies, and examined
the copper deposits then recently discovered. Two
years later, with Josiah D. Whitney, he was ap-
pointed by the U. S. government to assist Charles
T. Jackson in a geological survey of the Lake Su-
perior region, and in 1849 the completion of the
work was intrusted to them. The results were
published, by direction of congress, as a " Report
on the Geology and Topography of a Portion of
Lake Superior Land District in the State of Michi-
gan ; Part I., Copper Lands" (Washington, 1850),
and Part II., " The Iron Region, together with the
General Geology " (1852). These reports first
clearly established the richness and variety of the
mineral resources of that region, and still remain
an authority. Subsequently Mr. Foster returned
to Massachusetts, and became one of the organizers
of the " Native American " movement ; but in
1855, as he differed with them on the slavery ques-
tion, he withdrew with Henry Wilson, and was
active in the formation of the Republican party.
In 1855 he was a candidate for congress from the
Springfield district, but was defeated by a small
majority. Three years later he removed to Chicago,
and for some time was land commissioner for the
Illinois Central railway. He spent much time in
studying the mounds and other evidences of
ancient races in the Mississippi valley. Mr. Fos-
ter was a member of numerous scientific societies,
and for some time president of the Chicago acade-
my of sciences. In 1869 he was president of the
American association for the advancement of sci-
ence, and the subject of his presidential address
was " Recent Advances in Geology." He con-
tributed papers to scientific journals, and pub-
lished monographs on American ethnology and
antiquities, and also " The Mississippi Valley, its
Physical Geography, including Sketches of the To-
pography, Botany, Climate, Geology, and ]\Iineral
Resources; and of the Progress of Development
in Population and Material Wealth " (Chicago and
London, 1869) ; " Mineral Wealth and Railroad
Development " (New York, 1872) ; and " Prehistoric
Races of the United States " (Chicago, 1878).
FOSTER, Lafayette Sabine, statesman, b. in Franklin, Conn., 22 Nov., 1806 ; d. in Norwich, Conn., 19 Sept., 1880. His father, Capt. Daniel, was an officer of the Revolution, who was descended
